A rainy day at Chautauqua. It is impossible to hear the lecture over the sound of the rain on the awning.

I am trying to decide if the rain would
A: deter people from getting out of their houses
B:Drive them on direct routes to their destinations
Both of these options would make for slow days
or C: entice people to seek the warm comfort of reading on the veranda and buy books.

The answer seems to be D: no measurable effect. People just arrive wetter.

I put my bike in the back of Donna's Tribeca for a carpool to Chautauqua with the expectation of cycling to Hollyloft (www.hollyloft.com) for the Tuesday Night Ride.

I might feel a little less ambitious after the first 12 miles to the Hamptons' to continue on. We'll see. That is one decision that can be late in coming.

I just started the biography of Upton Sinclair (http://www.anthonyarthur.net/) and was surprised to find his father was an admiral in the Confederate Navy during the Civil War.